


it's the first day of a new life

by empressearwig



Category: Pink Carnation Series - Lauren Willig
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-10-20
Updated: 2011-10-20
Packaged: 2017-10-24 19:18:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/266945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/empressearwig/pseuds/empressearwig
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wherein Geoff thinks that redecorating is the key to a woman's heart.</p>
            </blockquote>





	it's the first day of a new life

When they returned from Ireland, Geoff and Letty settled into life at Pinchingdale House. Or rather, Geoff settled. Letty did not. After two weeks of watching his wife tiptoe past statues and trip over too long wall hangings and shy away from the large mirrors that covered the walls, Geoff knew that something must be done. He wanted her to be comfortable in his house. In _their_ home.

In Ireland, Geoff had told Letty she could redecorate, but she had demurred. Now, Geoff saw that if she was ever going to be at home at Pinchingdale House, she would have to make it hers. He merely had to convince her to do so.

And there, Geoff was stumped. A wife was not something that he had a great deal of experience in dealing with, and after the blunders involving spies and false identities, he was reluctant to do so again, at least so soon.

Which meant that he would need advice. Which meant that he would need to consult Miles.

It meant that Geoff delayed the conversation for another week, until he caught Letty apologizing to a particularly ugly bust of someone he thought might be his great-grandfather. After that, Geoff made all due haste to Loring House.

It should be noted that Geoff's reluctance to consult Miles had nothing to do with trust. Geoff trusted Miles with his life, with the secrets of the War Department, and with Henrietta whom he considered every bit his own sister. But trusting Miles was not the same thing as thinking that Miles would give him good advice. But there was no other advice to be had, and so Geoff went.

At least, he thought, where he would find Miles he would also find Henrietta. Surely she could be counted on, even if Miles could not.

Stwyth greeted him at the door and showed him into the front parlor. "I will fetch Master Miles," the butler intoned, and Geoff was just nodding his thanks when Miles bounded through the door.

"No need, Stwyth," Miles said, clapping the butler on the shoulder. "I'll take it from here."

Stwyth backed silently out of the room, and Miles turned to Geoff with an eager expression on his face. "Is there a mission?"

Geoff shook his head, a smile tugging at his mouth. Miles would never change. "If there were a mission, wouldn't you have been summoned to the War Office?"

Miles frowned. "Good point. Well then, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home with your new bride? Or is she tired of you already?"

Miles winked. Geoff rolled his eyes.

"Actually," Geoff said, "it's Letty that I've come about."

Miles's eyebrows shot straight up into his hair. "About Letty? You'll want Henrietta then."

"I don't --" Geoff started to say, but Miles had already stuck his head out into the hall.

"Henrietta!" Miles bellowed. "Geoff's here! And he wants advice about Letty!" He turned back to face Geoff. "That shouldn't take but a moment."

"Thanks so much," Geoff said, shaking his head. Really, he should have known that this would happen.

He rose to his feet when Henrietta walked in the doorway, kissing her proffered cheek.

"Geoffrey," she said. "What's this about you needing our help? I hope Letty's alright."

"Letty is fine," Geoff assured her. "Just --"

"Just what?" Henrietta interrupted, and Geoff gave her a look that he hoped conveyed a sense of exasperated fondness.

"Did marrying Miles come with an uncanny ability to interrupt me when I'm speaking?"

Henrietta had the grace to look abashed, and she patted him on the hand. "I'm sorry. You were saying?"

"Letty is fine," he repeated. "It's just that she seems rather uncomfortable in my house, and I don't know how to persuade her that she can redecorate it to her own taste."

Miles snorted. Henrietta elbowed him in the ribs. Miles coughed.

"I mean, redecorating! Wonderful thing," Miles said.

Henrietta laughed. "I know that it's awful," she said. "You're just not supposed to say so."

"So many rules that no one told me," Miles said.

Geoff seized on the point. "Yes, exactly!" He gave Henrietta a pleading look. "Help me. Please."

"Well, since you said please," she said. "What you do is this..."

*

There was a spring in his step when Geoff walked back into Pinchingdale House that evening. Letty met him at the foot of the stairs, a worried expression on her face.

"Geoffrey," she said, her hands twisting in the fabric of her skirts. "I was worried. You didn't say --"

He didn't let her finish either, kissing her in full view of the servants. When he pulled back, her expression had turned dazed instead, and Geoff smiled.

"Miles and Henrietta send their love," he said. "Henrietta said to tell you that she'll call tomorrow afternoon."

"I will look forward to seeing her," Letty answered, confusion evident in her voice. "But why didn't you --"

"I didn't take you with me because I wished to speak with them about you," Geoff said. He winced. The interrupting thing was apparently catching. "I wanted them to tell me how to convince you that I want you to do whatever you'd like with my house."

Letty laughed, but it wasn't a real laugh and they both knew it. "Honestly, Geoffrey, there isn't anything wrong with your house."

"Yes, there is," he said firmly. "It's that it's _my_ house." He took Letty's hands in his. "I want this to be _our_ home, Letty. And it won't be as long as you're apologizing to the statues."

"You saw that?" Letty squeaked, aghast.

Geoff nodded and kissed her again.

" _Our_ home," he repeated. "Anything you want. I mean that."

Letty drew him back down for another kiss, and Geoff took that as a good sign. He kissed her happily, glad that things had finally worked out. Confident that Letty's good sense wouldn't mean anything too disruptive was aboout to occur.

He forgot Henrietta.

*

A month later, he escaped to his club where he found Miles nursing a brandy and wearing a harried expression.

"You too?" asked Miles.

"Pass the brandy," said Geoff.


End file.
